


Bloodied Rose

by spazartist101



Category: Heart no Kuni no Alice | Alice in the Country of Hearts
Genre: Alice in Wonderland References, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Crack, Multi, Sexual Tension, Vampires
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-24
Updated: 2016-04-22
Packaged: 2018-05-16 00:56:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5807047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spazartist101/pseuds/spazartist101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vampires in Wonderland, an already violent place where life means nothing. What could possibly go wrong?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Down the Rabbit Hole!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All characters from the HnKnA series beling to Quinrose, I only own Ari and Malory

_How did this all start again? Why was I wandering aimlessly through this multicolored swirling mist that could only logically be a dream?_

Oh yea, that’s right. I had filled the vial and was going home. I finished that damned game that stupid rabbit and dream demon was rambling about. But why was I still trapped in this weird dream within a dream sequence? That nightmare had said something about this, maybe. I was half listening at the time.

Sighing softly, I let my eyes drift shut, thoughts racing all the way back to when all this craziness even started in the first place. It had been…night time, I think. No; too late for that. The sun was still up high. It had been in the afternoon, and I had fallen asleep while I was reading that book…  


* * *

“Yo! You still undead over there?” Oh joy of joys, loud voices. No, voice. It was only one person talking. Why couldn’t I just sleep more?

Groaning, I rolled my head onto its side, sending a tired and halfhearted glare towards the feline blondie making her way into the center of the rose labyrinth. Not that I wasn’t glad to see her; she was my best friend. But she knew damn well how irritable I could be when someone woke me up like that.

“Yes Mal. Still breathing with a next to no heartbeat,” I called back, voice feeling raw from sleep. Stupid sun. Why couldn’t it be night time already? Being a nocturnal had some perks, not gonna lie, but having that whole sensitive eyesight, especially during the daytime, really freaking sucked. Of course, it sure as hell beat being stuck six feet under.

Letting out a yawn as my friend walked further with a snort of derision and a dramatic roll of her eyes, she came to a stop with her hands on her hips, a soft glare on her own face as she bent at her waist to look at my face, me staring right back up at her completely deadpanned.

“Very funny, vampire lady. You’re just lucky it was _me_ who found you first and not someone itching to play some dirty prank on you,” she huffed out, standing up straight only to plop onto the crisp green grass next to me as I pushed myself into a seated position. Yawning again, I stretched my arms up over my head until my spine and elbows popped, a small groan leaving my throat as my limbs dropped back to my sides. I really couldn’t argue with her on that though. Already I could think of quite the list of people who would just _love_ to write “property of” with their name on it right across my forehead. Shaking my head to disperse such thoughts, I leaned back on my hands and turned my blue eyed gaze skyward, my expression deadpanned again as I absentmindedly beginning tapping my feet together.

“Yea, well, at least we’re practically the only two who can get here without getting lost for hours on end,” I countered, the comment making Malory snicker, knowing exactly who I was talking about most.

“Well, still. I told you not to go off and sleep out here how many times now?” she answered, the look she gave me enough to make me flinch away from her, “and oh look! Here you are sleeping out here, _again,_ ” she hissed, her hand lashing out to thump me over the head, making me clutch it and groan at the slight pain. I gave her a small pout before my usual cheesy grin spread across my features, the look I usually had whenever I was teasing someone, namely her.

“And look whose boobs got bigger, _again!”_ I taunted, my hand reaching over to poke at one of the globes that was clearly bigger than her head, “what are you, E now?”

“Shut up!” She snapped, her hand flying up to cover her bust, a blush growing over her face, her tail tapping repeatedly against the ground, “…and they’re H…” Well, that got my attention. I veered my eyes up to her face, the hues nearly bugging out of my skull at her words. I knew she was a busty lady but damn.

“WELL. I’m sure whoever you end up with in this lifetime would just love your fun bags—OW!” I started; only to cut off my sentence as I was smacked over the head again. My hand flew up to my head, clutching it as I let out another groan of pain.

“Hmph! Serves you right,” she huffed, arms crossing back over her chest, a pout stitching onto her features. Even with all the hits to my head I just didn’t know when to quit.

“Aw, but you’re just too fun to tease,” I cooed at her, laughing as I skirted back before she could hit me again. Well, I would at least be paying for that one later…

“Whatever, crazy lady,” she huffed, pushing herself to her feet and stretching her arms up over her head. I could tell the current amount of sunlight was even starting to make _her_ drowsy. Gotta love being part feline, right? She turned to me like she was going to say something, but stopped, mouth closing as she bent down and picked up the discarded book I had been reading earlier.

“God, you’re actually reading this again?” she snorted, flipping the book over to look at the back before turning it over to the cover again, the only thing on the dark brown hardcover surface being a silhouette of a girl in a puffy dress and a rabbit holding up a large watch.

“What! You know how much I love that book,” I snorted in answer, lying back down with my face turned skyward, my hands folding under my head to give at least some form of cushioning from the harder ground, “good man, that Carroll. Would have loved to meet him properly,” I mused, my brows furrowing together in thought. I had met him, but it had been in passing, and at the time I hadn’t cared who he even was.

“And once again; whatever, crazy lady,” she snickered, tossing the book back at me to have it land right on my stomach, making me let out a small puff of air at the sudden impact, “god, I might not be a nocturnal like you are but this sun is making me sleepy,” she grumbled, rubbing at her tired eyes as she started to make her way out of the heart of the labyrinth, “just don’t fall back asleep out here, alright?!” she called over her shoulder, her steps already growing lazier.

“Yea, yea, sleep well, Mal!” I laughed after her, waving her off with my own laziness, my hand dropping back down and going back under my head when she was out of sight. We both knew damn well I would more than likely end up falling asleep out here, but that might take longer this time, seeing as how she got me to wake up in the first place.

Sighing softly, I rolled over onto my side, the book falling off my stomach and onto the grass, the faint noise it emitted upon impact catching my attention. Looking down at the piece of literature, I couldn’t help but think about how utterly mad it would be if that world truly existed. I remembered an old human friend of mine telling me her sister once read that book, and the younger of the two had thought it would be a boring read. Even _I_ couldn’t convince her of how good it actually was.

Sighing again, I set aside the book and let my eyes start to drift shut, the near intoxicating scent of fully bloomed roses permeating the air making me feel drowsy all over again. In seconds I was halfway to that lovely little inner torment and confusion that was my dreams; until something sort of…stuck out in my head. Peeking my eyes back open, I glanced right across from my current near fetal position and over at the entrance to the center, having difficulty not just letting my eyes bug out in utter shock at the sight ten feet away from me.

Honest to God, there was a rabbit in a damn waistcoat looking right freaking at me. Which made me begin to dramatically question just what the hell I could have sunk my teeth into lately; unfortunately, even drugged up humans gave me side effects, even if they weren’t immediate ones.

Or this could have all been a dream, the more logical option, which meant the best thing for me to do was to just close my eyes and try and think up something else that was utterly insane for a change. And it would have worked if that damn animal hadn’t decided to just walk right up to me and stand _right in front of my face_. Were people just _determined_ not to let me sleep today?

“Hey! You’re supposed to chase the rabbit you know!” And now it was scolding me. How lovely. Maybe if I just kept my eyes closed and pretended it wasn’t there it would just go away. The biggest problem with that being my temper was already starting to boil, and with a paw to my nose, my hand lashed out to snatch the creature by the ears.

“Alright, looks like I’m having rabbit for dinner,” I half purred half growled out, my expression looking like I was some hungry demon. That look changed quickly when I found I wasn’t necessarily holding onto a normal rabbit anymore. Sure, I got the snatch-by-the-ears bit right, but those ears were now attached to a…dare I say it, one heck of a cutie. Even with the glasses perched on his nose. We stared at each other for a long, somewhat agonizing, moment of silence before I quickly let go of the long appendages attached to his head and backed away as far as I could, knowing my face was showing just how utterly confused I was. Again, all I could do was stare before turning my back and covering my ears, my legs drawing up till my knees were against my chest, my mind reeling as I tried to actually rationalize this entire situation.

 _This isn’t happening. It’s all gotta be a dream, right? RIGHT?!_ I rambled in my head, my thoughts running around in circles. _Oh look, now I’m rising off the ground and flying—wait, WHAT?!_

Blinking out of my thoughts, my eyes came back into focus to see the grass whizzing past my vision, barely making out what the rabbit eared man even said as he…well, kidnapped me. Sounded like something along the lines of “this will never do”.

“What the— _PUT ME DOWN THIS INSTANT!!_ ” I snapped, pushing myself up and keeping myself propped up on his shoulders, “this is blatant kidnapping dammit! Put me down now!!”

“I would appreciate you not shout into my ears, miss,” he answered calmly, crimson hues shifting up towards me and an overly polite smile on his face, “I cannot put you down until we get there.”

“Get…get where, you psycho!” I snapped, my head turning more to shout directly into his ear, on purpose of course. I shifted further up until I was seeing properly where we were going, my eyes bugging out of my head in shock at what I was greeted with.

“ _And since when has there been a giant freaking chasm in MY GARDEN?!_ ” I shouted, now starting to pull on the rabbit man’s ears, “turn around and put me down so I can punch you properly! OI!!”

“If there’s a hole we know, then down it we go!” he only chirped in answer, making me very tempted to just start beating him to the ground now. I was raising my fist to do so when something made me freeze.

I was now staring up at the sky, and it was getting smaller and smaller. More accurately further and further away from me. I couldn’t help but let out a very loud and very long string of curses as I scrambled away from the rabbit man and tried to find something that would stop me from plummeting further towards wherever the hell this damn hole led to.

“Such harsh words!” the man suddenly huffed at me, a slight frown pulling onto his features, “you really must mind your tone. Such things should be suppressed with a groan!”

“Stop talking before I come over there and strangle you!!” I snapped at him, but still frantically trying to find a way up.

“Worry not, we’ll be there soon,” he cooed, smiling softly again. I only looked over at him like he had completely lost his mind, the incredulousness immediately replaced with anger as he only smiled wider at me. I hissed out another curse as I squeezed my eyes shut, my arms flying up to cover my head seconds before a bright light began to shine from what I was dreading to be my imminent…well not doom, but I would certainly be in a hell of a lot of pain until all of my bones healed. Except…nothing happened. I sat frozen on the thankfully solid ground for a long moment, my arms still covering my head before I peeked one eye open, slowly lowering my arms down to my sides and looking around at the scene before me. I could barely even manage a proper sentence, my mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water as my mind attempted to connect with my vocal cords and mouth.

“Ari, my dear, welcome to Wonderland,” the rabbit man suddenly greeted, now smiling like a complete buffoon. And once again, I was looking at him like he was completely insane. More so when he suddenly brandished a blue vial with a heart shaped stopper, declaring that I now needed to drink it.

“Okay, now I know you’re out of your mind, because there is no way in _hell_ I am drinking that!!” I shouted at him, starting to back away from him, and stumbling when trying to push myself to my feet.

“She did say you would be more difficult…” the man sighed, getting me all confused, and apparently more importantly distracted, because before I knew it he was crouched in front of me, the vile in his hands empty, and his free hand was reaching out to grab my chin and wrench my face towards his. I opened my mouth to object, too late to do so when his lips pressed firmly over my own, my eyes going wide and staring into his calm crimson hues in complete shock and…fear. The last person to force me to drink some strange liquid was my Sire, and I hated him to this day for it. No way in hell was I ever going to forgive the man in front of me for doing this.

Anger for later set aside, I was still completely frozen, but managed to summon up enough strength to squeeze my eyes shut and wedge my arms between us, our breaths panting out as I stared down at the ground in confused fear. Just what had he made me drink…?

I continued to stare down, even as the other rose to his feet and wiped off drops of the fluid from his lips, feeling his eyes on me as though expecting some sort of reaction. Eventually, I looked up at him, blue hues wide on my face, my mind feeling like it was already shutting down.

“What was that…?” I asked softly, feeling like it wasn’t even me talking anymore.

“That was the ‘medicine of the heart’. With that, you now must complete the ‘game’!” he chirped in response, his head tilting…almost cutely to the side in answer.

“…How did you know my name?” I asked, still feeling like I was detached from my own body. Hey, at least I wasn’t shaking. Yet.

“Because my beloved told me,” he answered simply, his idiotic smile spreading back to his face, “does this mean you wish to know my name as well? How splendid! It’s—”

“I don’t care…” I growled, anger starting to settle into my veins again. The other looked at me in shock for a moment, before, once again, smiling sweetly down at me.

“Well, should you ever need anything, come to Heart Castle. I will be awaiting you, my dear,” he cooed, starting to walk away from me, “simply ask for Peter White…”

Well. At least now I knew the name of the next person I was going to maim.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hhhhhh, my first post! And honestly one of my first fanfics ever! The first edit was....god awful. Hope you enjoy! Going to warn anyone now, progress....might be slow. Work, all that good adulting stuff, I'm sure most of you know the drill already


	2. Go For Casual

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh sure. Follow the directionally challenged knight. Always smart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All characters belonging to the original HnKnA series belong to Quinrose!

I could only sit in a stunned silence as I watched my kidnapper just…leave, confusion still making my thoughts run wild through my head as I tried to sort out this clear insanity. Okay, so I got kidnapped by a man, who was apparently named Peter White, and was brought down what I was damn sure was a rabbit hole down to…Wonderland. Of all places, it _had_ to be Wonderland! And I got kidnapped by the freaking white rabbit, of all things!

Letting out a groan, I flopped backwards and kicked my legs out from under me and into the air, letting them flop back down to the ground weakly so I was lying there spread eagle, damn glad I was wearing my jeans today and not one of my dresses. Not that it would matter either way, since I usually wore leggings with skirts or dresses, but that’s beside the point. Point was I was now trapped in this place, with no idea where I was specifically, and no way of knowing how the hell I was supposed to get back to my own world.

Maybe this really was all just a dream and I would eventually wake up, right?

_Right?_

Letting out a loud groan of frustration, I rolled onto my stomach with my face buried in my folded arms, willing myself to just wake up and for once listen to Malory about not sleeping in the garden. It might have worked, if the very strong scent of mixed blood wasn’t now waving right in front of me. That much blood around a creature like me, who barely fed as it was, was like waving a red flag in our face. Now I was _really_ glad I remembered to take my two servings of blood packs for dinner this morning…

“Whoever is standing in front of me has five seconds to back the hell up before I tear their face off…” I growled up at the stranger, my hand clenching around the vial, not bothering to look up to see who I was even talking to. I really hoped it was Peter. Then I could let out some currently _very_ pent up anger.

“Well that’s no way to say hi to someone!” the stranger—clearly male—chirped from above my head. God, I could practically see the idiotic smile on his face now, the expression even clear in his voice. Still grumbling, I pushed myself up onto my elbows and craned my head up, my eyes squinting in the light and up at the face of the sandy-haired newcomer grinning away at me. I was actually taken aback by the color of his eyes, seeing as how the only humans I’d met who held them were just albino or wearing contacts. Still, even though he smelled human, something was very…off, about him. I just couldn’t quite put my finger on it…

“Yea, well, sorta in a bit of an irritable mood. Could ya tell?” I grumbled, my expression turning deadpanned as I turned away from his now laughing face and pushed myself up from the ground, patting off my clothes and ruffling out my short blue-dyed hair. Even with my voice dripping with sarcasm he still held a goofy grin on his face.

"Ha-ha! Most people usually are when they meet with good ol' Petey!" the blonde chirped, his statement matter-of-fact as he continued to grin away like a buffoon. The Petey comment did catch my attention though...

"You...wouldn't happen to mean Peter White by that comment, would you?" I asked, a bit hesitantly. If this guy knew where that kidnapping rabbit was that would take a ridiculous load off my shoulders in trying to find the dirty bastard.

"Sure do!" the man chirped again, his head even tilting to the side, "he works at the castle, which I happen to be he knight of! I can take you there if you want," he finally offered. I swear if I wasn't so pissed I would start crying tears of joy. A hug would have to do, so without warning I latched my arms around his midsection, my own body visibly relaxing.

"You, are a god send," I grumbled out, voice muffled by the material of his red coat. I suppressed any of my...urges at smelling the blood on him, that nagging feeling creeping back as he laughed and pat the top of my head.

"Anytime to save a damsel in distress!" he chuckled, pulling back and grinning down at me. I rolled my eyes at that, pulling back from him and brushing off my clothes again before gesturing for this new stranger to lead the way. The goofy grin remained on his face as he moved around me, starting to lead the way to this "Heart Castle" he was apparently the knight of, and I followed silently behind, that nagging feeling only growing as he left the plaza I ended up in and only further and further into the dense overgrowth of trees. I came to a complete halt when we reached a large set of gates that was most decidedly _not_ the entrance to the castle. Especially considering the amount of hats adorning the walls and frame work of the gate in decoration.

"Uh, Mister Knight person?" I started, quickly reaching out and nabbing his red coat to stop him in his tracks before he went any further towards the gate, resulting in him almost falling back on his ass, "I think you may have taken a wrong turn..."

"Really? I'm pretty sure this is the direction. The castle is just behind the mansion, I'm sure of it!" he laughed, his eyes beginning to grow a bit confused when he found himself completely immobile, "by the way, just call me--"

"Dammit, Ace! How many times do I have to tell you to stop getting lost over here?!" Came the very irritated interruption that caused who I now knew to be called Ace to stop short in his personal introduction, and for both our heads to swivel in the direction of the owner. Despite the angry face and somewhat irritated stature, my eyes flew up and immediately lit at the sight of those fluffy blond ears perched on his head. I barely heard a word the knight and other rabbit man were saying, completely transfixed on the new stranger's ears, until a grey gloved hand snapped their fingers and waved in front of my face, the harsh noise snapping me out of my trance and blink my blue eyes rapidly while visibly flinching back.

"Ha-ha! You sure do space out easy!" Ace laughed, head tilting again as he put his hands in his hips, red eyes gleaming while the violet eyes of the other male only glared further, "kinda hard to answer who you are if I don't know your name, cutie!" 

_Cutie?_ I thought to myself, brows furrowing for a moment at the pet name before a slight frown pulled onto my face, though it wasn't necessarily out of anger.

"It's Ari," I huffed out, arms shrugging for a moment as I crossed my arms over my chest.

"I told you already I didn't care, Ace!" the rabbit man snapped, his glare shifting briefly over towards the red clad knight before his expression changed, a slight grin tugging on his lips before he started reaching for his...gun?!

"Not that it really matters. You're both in Hatter territory, which means I get test out this new baby," he huffed out, aiming his gun first at Ace. He just stood there with that grin still on his face, but as soon as I heard the click of the hammer I moved without thinking. A loud bang had me disoriented, but the pain that blossomed from my back and into my lungs made it seem like nothing. Well, at least I had stopped the bullet from hitting someone who could actually die from such a wound.

Still, having such a spike of pain after such a long time...it was no shocker I started to drop. Fortunately Ace was smart enough to catch me before I actually hit the ground.

"Wow, Elliot. Never thought you would actually shoot a girl," the knight laughed, stooping down to actually pick me up and hold me like a bride.

"It's not like I did it on purpose! She moved in the way!" the other snapped. I only let out a cough in response, too busy keeping my jaw clenched to keep from screaming to form anything actually coherent. I could already feel blood soaking my back. That was certainly gonna be a bitch to clean later. God, Malory was gonna kill me...

"Let's just hope she doesn't wind up dead, boys," came a third voice that made me freeze. He sounded far too familiar, but the fact he was behind me only added to the excuses to why I should probably stay put. Course, that was about the last thing my mind processed, seeing how I only passed out from the pain and now severe blood loss not two seconds later.

* * *

You know the worst way to wake up? Jolting. Which is exactly what I did God knew how long after I passed the hell out. And what was even worse, whatever I was on was far narrower than what I was used to, so obviously there was some swearing and flailing before I ended up on the ground flat on my stomach, groaning from not only the pain still in my back but now the hit to my elbow and knees. Keeping completely still for a long moment, I kept my eyes squeezed shut, suppressing any other curses from slipping free before actually propping myself up on my elbows and getting a good look at where I was. Though, I was...terribly confused to find myself staring ahead at black shoes with white covers on what I deemed to be masculine legs. Blinking slowly, it took a moment of slight hesitance before I turned my head up, a grimace pulling on my face as I stared up at the raven haired man looming over me.

"Quite the mouth, little lady," he near purred, a smirk stretched across his damnably attractive face. For God's sake it should be illegal for someone to be that good looking.

"Yes, well. Just because I got the goods doesn't mean I'm a lady," I snorted in return, managing to briefly tear my eyes away from him to push myself back onto the couch, "at least in status."

After sitting back down, I stretched my arms over my head until something popped, letting my limbs drop to my sides, and realising just what my current state was. My pants were still on, thankfully, but my blue button down and black bra were gone, and in their place were bandages that only barely had me covered. Getting flustered all over again, I quickly looked around until I found the crumpled blanket on the ground, snatching up the material and covering myself with it, a blush already spreading over my face.

"No need for modesty. I've already seen them," the stranger chuckled as he sat down next to me, causing me to send him only a half hearted glare. To be honest he had to be the most attractive man I'd met so far, and I took a brief moment to get a good look at him. The smirk was still on his face as he eyed me over himself, turquoise eyes vibrant with mischief. His shirt was partially unbuttoned, and I had to stop myself from jumping on him at the sight of his exposed throat. Which was proving exceedingly difficult given the fact I had just been shot. Still, I was proud of myself when I managed to finally look away. The burn in my throat, however, did not leave, which only made me want to sink my fangs in this complete stranger's neck even more.

Glancing back, I flinched to find he had been staring at me, a blush spreading to my face in embarrassment at the idea of just how long he actually had been staring.

"W-what...? I got something on my face or what?" I huffed at him, my eyes narrowing slightly in suspicion. He only chuckled in answer, his posture changing so his body was facing me more.

"Am I correct in assuming you are an Outsider?" He asked softly, his head tilting to the side as he did and making his raven hair fall over his eyes slightly. God, I was tempted to rake my fingers through that mess--

_Dammit, Ari, focus!_

"Uh...I guess?" I mumbled, my brows scrunching together in confusion, "of course, I have no idea what an Outsider is, so who knows."

"An Outsider, is someone who isn't a natural resident in Wonderland," he clarified, sending me a look that could either kill a man or make a woman drop her panties.

"Ah. Well, then yes, I am an...'Outsider'," I grumbled, unable to keep my eyes from flickering back to his neck. The temptation was certainly becoming harder to resist.

"Well, you're certainly different from the other one," he purred, leaning closer again to take my hand in his, "my apologies for my subordinate's rash behavior. Though, I am surprised you survived that shot..."

"What, that? I've gone through worse," I huffed, averting my eyes for a moment. Was someone running here? I was definitely distracted from whoever was approaching when I felt my hand lift from my side and wonderfully soft lips press to my knuckles. That only made me tempted to try...other things. Dammit, you sinner, stop it! Bad Ari!

"Nonetheless, my subordinate acted without my orders. And I would hate to not experience such a heated look from such a woman," the man purred, his words sending a blush flaming across my face. I immediately pulled my hand once his grip was loose enough, letting out a shaky sigh to get my nerves under control, and the sudden slamming of the door made me feel like my heart really had stopped. I whipped my head around to see a petite blonde spitfire of a human with eyes as blue as the sky locked on me with immense worry, and the usual slight irritance she never really could hide. I immediately jumped to my feet, barely managing to sputter out her name in shock before she was colliding with me hard enough to knock me over onto the ground again. She was fully aware a tackle like that couldn't hurt me.

"Jesus fuck, Alice. And you say _I_ have super strength..." I grumbled, managing to push myself up on my elbows to look at her.

"And you still swear like a sailor," she huffed in response, despite the grin spreading across her face. She flinched at seeing my face though, eyes widening in worry again, "jeez, when was the last time you ate?" she breathed, brows furrowing in slight irritance. I blinked at her in confusion before reaching a hand up to my face, fingers touching just under my eye. From her expression they had gone red from hunger.

"Well I ate before I was dragged here, but I did get shot. And lost a lot of blood because of it," I grumbled, my hand dropping from my face and pushing myself up further, Alice removing her arms from around my waist to kneel in front of me. I was still tempted to take that devilishly handsome man's blood, but refrained. Feeding was a bit of an...intimacy, and I wasn't typically one to do it in front of other people. Still...

"Okay, Ari? You realize you're eyeballing Blood like your next meal," Alice huffed out, snapping me out of my partial trance with a visible flinch. I quickly tore my gaze away from a now chuckling Blood, the man leaning back in his seat and crossing his legs.

"I certainly didn't mind it," he purred, his gaze focussed back on me and making me blush, "by the by, what brings you here today, Alice? Finally left the prime minister for me?"

"In your dreams, Blood. I just came to return the books I borrowed," the blonde snorted on answer, holding up the novel from the basket at her side, "but when I got here Elliot was freaking out about shooting another Outsider. Not to mention the puddle of blood outside," she grumbled, the irritance coming back with a vengeance as she glared at blood, "you're just lucky she can't die that easily."

"Now now, Alice. If those bullets had been silver and hit my heart, I would probably be dead," I corrected, pushing myself up to my feet and yanking Alice up with me, "not to mention I would have to lose my head at the same time," I snickered, dusting myself off lightly.

"If I may interject," Blood interrupted, his hand flicking up to stop us from continuing, "but, I'm still curious as to how she's standing here now like nothing even happened," he continued out, his grin from before gone as his brows furrowed, expression serious. We both stared at him for a moment before I grinned, turning to face him fully.

"Oh come on. With all the books lying around here, _surely_ you can take a wild guess as to what I am," I chuckled, my head tilting softly to the side as I moved closer towards him. My smirk grew as he raised a brow at me while I moved to lean over him, keeping myself propped up by the back of the sofa.

"Ari, control yourself," Alice near growled, making my eyes flicker towards her, "Blood, put your hand down. Don't make me spray you like you're cats." That made me roll my eyes at her. But, I listened and moved back, arms crossing over my chest as I faced her.

"Well, if biting won't be enough proof, then help me get these bandages off. You and I both know they weren't necessary," I grinned, snickering when she rolled her eyes but nonetheless moved behind me. I shrugged my shoulders a bit when the wrappings loosened, my hands moving up to cover my now exposed bust. The pain had all but faded at that point, and I was relieved someone had thought to remove the bullet. A sharp intake of breath sounded from Blood as my back was exposed, the sofa creaking as he stood up to stand behind me. I couldn't help shivering as his fingers smoothed over my unblemished skin, clearly shocked not even a scar was left behind. It was a good thing I was an older vampire, or I would need blood to help me heal. His fingers drew away as he stepped back, a snort of derision leaving him as his expression turned serious again.

"Care to explain? You're clearly an Outsider, yet you healed in only a single time period," he ground out, clearly thinking this had to be a joke and he was not amused. Huffing at him, I turned around to face him properly, keeping an arm over my chest while moving my other hand to rest on my hip.

"I didn't die, because, technically speaking, I'm already dead."

_Smooth._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yayay, second chapter up already!  
> I should probably warn people now, my chapters run...kind of long. I will try my best to keep them shorter, but no promises when I get the creative juices flowing


	3. Midnight Tea Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any characters from the original Heart no Kuni no Alice series belong to Quinrose

If there was ever time to discover that time really did come to a standstill, now would be that time. All Blood did was stare at me like I had just lost my head entirely. That alone was enough to make me start fidgeting, but I stopped when I heard Alice trying to contain her laughter behind me. Well, at least it was something to break the growing awkward silence.

"Is that really necessary Alice?" I strained out, looking over my shoulder to give her a half hearted glare, which seemed to only make her laugh harder.

"W-way to go for casual," she giggled, moving a hand to swipe at her eyes. Even Blood started snickering, which made me turn my glare towards him.

"Don't you even start, Mister," I growled, leaning close enough to poke him in the chest. He only snatched my hand in response, making me blink for a moment before trying to yank my hand back.

"Nonetheless, I still expect a proper explanation," he chuckled, moving to flop back into his seat when my hands lashed out to latch onto his vest, making him go dizzy for a moment as I spun it off him and onto my own torso, and shoved him back into his seat, starting on a little life summary while I buttoned up the material. The whole act had been as fluid as dancing for me.

"I was born human in 1829, and was forced to make the transition into a vampire before I could turn twenty one," I started, making my fangs spring from my gums with an audible click from the friction of my teeth sliding together, "if you don't believe me I certainly wouldn't mind biting you. I could use the meal after losing that much of my own blood," I half purred half growled, still irked I had been shot but certainly not minding the idea of biting that tasty morsel. I swear I was choking on air with what he said next, smirk plastered to his face once again.

"I read getting bitten is quite the pleasurable experience. If that's true then I certainly wouldn't mind it either." Well, I had to give him points for his forwardness.

"Well..." I mumbled, glancing over at Alice again to find her holding back laughter enough so she was shaking again, "yes, it's true. However, I prefer not having an audience. That sort of thing is...a bit of an intimate act for people like me," I explained, turning my attention back towards Blood. Alice was still sniggering behind me. Clearly she was taking enjoyment out if my embarrassment.

"I'm sure Alice wouldn't mind giving us a bit of privacy," Blood purred, making both of us glare at him.

"Blood, do not make me dump a pitcher of ice water on your head," Alice huffed, arms crossing over her chest as she flopped onto the sofa, me following after her and crossing my legs. I opened my mouth for a follow up threat when something I hadn't smelled for years slammed my senses, making my eyes go wide.

"Do...do I smell fresh tea being made?" I mumbled, my gaze locked onto the door, "I smell tea. Please tell me fresh tea is being made...!" I near whimpered, jumping up to find the source, only to be yanked back down by my wrist by Alice.

"You go out there and everyone is going to see your chest. Put something on first," she growled at me, her expression deadpanned. She sort of had a point; if the tea was outside there was no stopping the wind.

"But...tea..." I whined, peeking around her and back towards the door.

"Put something else on first," she near ordered, making me pout and slump into my seat.

"I certainly don't mind her current dress," Blood purred, rising from his own seat and wandering over to what I assumed was his desk, "I find it rather nice to have a woman wearing my clothes," he chuckled, making me blush and Alice glare. He only ignored it, clearly used to those looks, and my eyes went wide when a black top hat was placed on his head. Shaking my head quickly, I reached for the fallen bandages and shifted the vest, placing the wrappings back on enough to actually cover my chest. Shifting the vest back around so it sat properly, I glanced back around to find Blood looking damn good in his outfit, his vest replaced and a coat now adorning his frame. He was busy tugging gloves on his hands when Alice yanked my wrist again, now pulling me towards the door, only talking to me when we were out of the room.

"Good God, you were eyeing him like a piece of candy," she huffed, her grip on my wrist relaxing so she could link our arms together. I snickered, shaking my head slowly.

"He may look like your old tutor, but he is...far more attractive," I purred, a grin spreading to my face, "maybe it's the confidence," I mused, tapping my chin in thought, "it's fortunate his voice is different too."

"Oh...caught that did ya..." she grumbled, a frown tugging on her face at the old heartbreak, "anyway, how did you get in Wonderland? I'm kind of surprised to find you here..." she went on, sounding a bit desperate for a change of topic. A frown of my own tugged on my lips at that, my hand smoothing to the vial in my back pocket for a moment before drawing away.

"The stupid rabbit kidnapped me," I growled, my eyes narrowing at nothing in particular, "that wayward knight was taking me to castle so I could find him and beat him up for making me drink that dreadful medicine," I explained, claws digging into my palm to control myself, but I relaxed my grip when Alice motioned to the blood now dripping from my hand.

"I'm gonna guess you're talking about Peter and Ace," she sighed, looking a bit exasperated, "I guess reminiscing about old friends got Peter thinking I would be happier with them here. Also, never trust Ace when it comes to directions. He could get lost in a paper bag," she explained, shaking her head slowly at the mention of Ace. Apparently she had experienced getting lost with him first hand. However, her talking with Peter made me pause.

"W...wait a minute," I breathed, brows furrowing as I turned my squinted gaze towards the blonde, "shooting in the dark, but I'm guessing Peter is the Prime Minister Blood was talking about...so...you... _oh my god!!_ " I shouted, my eyes snapping wide open at Alice's now blushing face. She slapped a hand over my mouth, stopping my incoherent babble from continuing and leaving me in a silent stupor.

"Yes, I'm with Peter. To be honest he's the only one not trying to constantly get me into bed. He's...really sweet. And I know he's rash sometimes but he protects me..." she mumbled, her blush steadily worsening. I rolled my eyes, shoving her hand from my mouth to show I was smirking again.

"Dear god, you're smitten. And don't lie about him not getting you to bed. You know I can tell when someone isn't a virgin just from smell," I teased, making her whole face flush bright red.

"That must mean I'm in quite the trouble," a voice purred behind me, making me jump. I didn't even realize Blood was so close behind us. I opened my mouth to retort when something made me pause. I turned away from both Alice and Blood to face the scene now before us. I guess I had been so engrossed in the conversation I didn't even notice we were outside. Still, seeing so much tea and pastries in one place...I could have sworn I had simply died and gone to heaven.

"Alice..." I started, eyes still locked onto the setting before me, "if I start shouting 'no room', or sing 'twinkle twinkle little bat', just ignore me. I promise I'm still...mostly sane," I warned, edging slowly closer towards the table. Already I was trying to pick out which tea was which so I could drink the one I liked best first. Seriously though, this was a scene right out that book I loved so much. Hell the Hatter was already here. All that was missing was the Dormouse and the--

"Hell kinda song is that?" a voice huffed out, making me internally flinch before turning to find the man who had shot me earlier. Apparently he recognized me too, but his what I deemed usually perky ears quickly dropped, and I swear he looked like he was about to cry.

"I am sooooo sorry for shooting you! I didn't know you were an Outsider!!" he quickly rambled out, making my face go blank as I only blinked at him. The apologies went on for another few seconds before I was suddenly just...hugging him. He was just so darn cute I couldn't help it. Well, at the very least it got him to shush. A blushing mess in two seconds flat, but silent.

"Perfectly alright...Elliot, right? I'm the one who moved in the way," I sighed in content, moving my hand up as I stepped back to pat the top of his head. His ears still laid flat against his head, but he still nodded in understanding, "besides, I'm already all better!" Which wasn't totally a lie. I was still craving blood enough for my gums to ache with the need, but I was restraining myself.

"Whoa, seriously?!" he gasped, violet eyes going wide in shock, "there was so much blood, I thought for sure..."

"Nope! Healthy as a horse, my good man!" I chirped giving him a thumbs up, "now then! I smelled fresh tea so where the hell is it?" I huffed, turning my attention away from Elliot and looking back at the table. My eyes became fixated when I saw a particular treat I hadn't indulged in for quite some time.

"Is...is that...carrot cake?" I asked slowly, my blue eyes wide on the pastry. I could practically hear the whoosh of Elliot's ears as they shot straight up in attention.

"You actually like it?!" he exclaimed, putting his hands on my shoulders and whirling me around to look me dead in the eye. I blinked at him before nodding slowly in reply. He looked close to tears again at the action, though this time out of joy than remorse.

"You should totally try some! The chefs here make some of the best carrot cake ever!" he rambled, curling an arm around my shoulders and starting to guide me towards the table. I was stopped short by tiny hands yanking me back by my arms and wrenching me out from Elliot's grip. When I turned to thwack the culprits, all I found was a pair of boys, clearly twins, latched onto my arms.

"Is it true you got shot, lady?" the one in blue asked first, eyes wide with excited curiosity.

"Er...yes?" I mumbled, brows furrowing as I watched their little faces beaming up at me, "not the first time though. I've gone through worse..." I grumbled, not really speaking to them, but it sure got their attention.

"Really?!" the one in red gawked, standing on tiptoes to get closer to my face, "what else happened to ya?!"

"...I'll tell you later," I quickly rambled out, managing to finally wriggle out of their grasp and once more head to the table, "right now, I want some freaking tea, and I swear to god I am going to shoot something if I get moved away from it again," I growled, plopping down into my seat, finally, and closing my eyes for a moment to cool down before I really did shoot something. When I opened my eyes again I found everyone staring at me, but Blood was clearly trying to suppress his laughter.

"...WHAT," I snapped, my brows furrowing in confusion and eyes narrowing, specifically on the Hatter.

"I understand what you are, but I didn't peg you to have such violent tendencies," he chuckled, not backing down even an inch, "I'm sure you'll fit right in here."

"Okay, cryptic note aside," I mumbled, tearing my gaze away to look down and find my cup full, "now that I have my tea, interrupt me away."

"That mean I can say somethin' now?" A voice snickered behind me. I barely managed to take a sip before they said something, but fortunately the hands that clapped onto my shoulders stopped me from spilling my drink. Calmly setting it back down, I rolled my head back to stare up in the golden one staring back at me, a mischievous grin spread across his face and infecting his gaze. My eyes immediately drew to the ears twitching atop his head, and it literally took me only a second to figure who he was supposed to be.

"Dee, Dum, who's the newbie?" he asked, showing eye darting over towards the twin boys. How I hadn't figured that out on my own was beyond me.

"Dunno yet, Boris!" the blue one called, already seated across from me and munching on a pastry.

"Stupid chicken rabbit shot her, though. And she survived it!" his brother followed, leaning forward in his seat and putting his elbows on the table.

"Seriously?!" the Cheshire Cat gasped out, looking back down at me with an excited look on his face before he started smirking, "that explains the bandages then," he purred, and I jumped again when I felt the vest shift, a huff leaving me when I found his attention had turned a bit south from my face. I merely pushed his hand away, a smirk of my own spreading to my face.

"I expect dinner before someone gets handsy with me," I purred back at him, grinning to myself as his eye went wide, and I swear he started blushing.

"Careful Boris," Alice warned, sitting next to me and picking up her own drink, "Ari has a very different definition of 'dinner'," she huffed, her face turning deadpanned as I scowled over at her.

"Who cares? If that gives me permission to get handsy..." Boris grinned, already leaning down and curling his arms around my shoulders. Least that was enough to make me laugh; and it was even better I loved cats so much. I even reached back and started scratching his ears, earning me a jolt before he started purring. Grinning, I reached over for my tea again taking a sip and finally taking time to actually taste what I was drinking. It was a green tea, with hints of...something citrus. Lemon, maybe. And even some hints of peach. Sighing my content, I set the cup back down, patting Boris's arm after to get him to let go so he could sit down. He let go a bit reluctantly, but made sure he was next to me; even if that meant booting one of the twins out of the way.

"I take it the tea is to your liking, young lady?" Blood suddenly asked, making me jolt at the unexpected comment. Still, a grin spread wide across my face as I answered.

"It's excellent! I've always been a fan of green tea the most, but I'm always willing to drink something else," I answered, "what sort of teas do you like?" That earned me a smile. Tea lovers unite I suppose.

"I prefer black tea myself. And I always make sure I get the best quality leaves," he answered. I was about to comment when I heard Alice smack her forehead, making me turn my head around to send a soft glare in her direction.

"Something wrong?" I huffed, crossing my arms tight over my chest.

"No. I just forgot you were as bad as Blood when it comes to your tea obsession," she sighed, shaking her head slowly as she lowered her hand to her lap, taking a sip of her tea afterwards.

"I do NOT have an obssession!" I snapped, realising after that Blood had said the same thing at the same time, which made Boris and Alice start snickering. I felt a pout tug onto my face before I slumped in my seat, still reaching over for my delicious tea despite my little outburst. It wasn't until I was calmer that I started to remember just why I loved tea so much. I hadn't even realized my face had fallen until Alice put a hand on my shoulder.

"Everything okay?" she asked softly, her brows furrowed as she studied my face. I blinked at her as my mind returned to reality, glancing away and towards my cup long enough to set down before answering.

"Mm, yea. Just...remembering some past stuff," I sighed, running a hand through my hair and ruffling it softly, "I'm alright. Promise."

"Pretty Lady, pretty Lady!" the one in blue suddenly exclaimed, seeming to pop out of nowhere and latch onto my arm, Alice tapping my arm and whispering which one he was as he started prattling, "can you tell us about the other things that happened now?!"

"Well, I don't see why not," I huffed slightly, giving a slight shrug of my shoulders, "unless the host doesn't mind me getting into some pretty gory shit," I smirked, glancing at Blood with a raised brow. A simple wave of his hand signaled me to continue, and my smirk changed to a full on grin as I started into a full description of how I had lost my limbs, stabbed through the heart and left to starve for three days, shot multiple times at close range, and even lost my head during a fight with a Hunter who thought that was all that was needed to finish the job. Both the twins and even Boris sat in awe, hooked on every word.

"But there's not even any scarring!" Elliot exclaimed, waving his fork a bit as he spoke.

"Vampires have incredible healing abilities. Unless the injury is made with silver and is gruesome enough, there won't be much scarring," I explained, holding up my arm to show an array of tiny white lines covering the limb, "these were from a silver blade from a Hunter, and I was still young at the time so I wasn't aware of what silver would do. Worst pain I've ever felt. Well, till I lost my head, anyway."

"Anyway," Boris started, making my attention shift towards the feline, "you been to any of the other territories yet?" he asked the grin back on his face but from what I assumed an entirely different reason.

"Not much opportunity to yet," I grumbled, a scowl settling onto my features, "stupid rabbit made me drink that God awful medicine and left me in the middle of that plaza that I still don't know whose it was," I growled, glaring pointedly at Alice for her lack of sharing, "then that directionally challenged knight got me lost enough to end up here instead of the castle. And you already know what happened shortly upon my arrival," I finished with a huff, waving my hand in a circular motion to brush off the issue. If at all possible, Boris's grin only spread wider.

"You should _totally_ come party at the amusement park!" he chirped, his showing gold eye wide and full of excitement, "just a head's up though; watch out when the old man takes out his violin," he warned, a visible shudder shaking him at the apparent memory of the instrument. I only blinked at him in confusion.

"Oh, _gross!_ " one of the twins groaned, running a hand over his face in clear distaste.

"That old fart is terrible!" his brother echoed, face growing paler.

"He plays the violin?" I interrupted the agony, actually interested. Always was when it came to music.

"If you call what he does 'playing'..." Alice groaned, making me whirl on her in shock. Apparently even she had been tortured by this thing herself if she was complaining about it. I only pouted afterwards, sinking slightly in my seat. So much for finding a kindred spirit in this place.

"I'm guessing you like music?" Elliot pointed out, violet eyes wide in curiosity and a small grin stretching across his face. i was soon mirroring his grin, sitting back up in my seat.

"I used to play the viola, but I fell out of practice not long before I was Turned," I started, my fingers flexing and tightening around my tea cup on reflex at the memories of what I had to lose, "I never gave up singing though. Didn't wanna hear of it from my Sire, so he let it slide."

"Oh yeah, I remember, you used to sing when I refused sleep," Alice chuckled, making me roll my eyes at her.

"Still can't believe it took you so long to figure out I wasn't human," I sighed dramatically, shaking my head until a smack against my arm made me stop.

"Hush up," she scolded, returning her attention to her tea, “I had thought it all a dream. I was still young back then,” she grumbled after, taking a sip of tea as i started snickering.

“You were so cute back then. Such a wee thing, all blue eyes and curiosity,” I giggled, dodging easily when she tried to hit me.

“Well, if you’re into music, maybe you could teach the old man a thing or two,” Boris suggested, waving his fork in the air a bit as he started to tilt in his chair.

“Okay, he can’t _really_ be that bad, can he?” I huffed out, turning to look at the feline, who only groaned in response, his chair clunking loudly as he fell forward and put his head on the table, his arms covering his head.

“He’s god awful. I wouldn’t wish that kind of torture on my worst enemy…” he groaned, voice only slightly muffled because of his downturned head. I could only imagine just what sort of enemies he was talking about, being where we were.

“If he’s as bad as you say, then I would sooner wring his neck than get anything done,” I groaned myself, pushing my hair back from my eyes, “I can only take so much tone deaf-ness.”

“I certainly look forward to seeing that,” Blood chuckled before taking a sip of tea. Well, sounded like someone didn’t get along well. I had just raised my cup back to take a sip when a sharp pain bloomed in my side, halting my movements entirely and making my eyes go red. Gaze flickering down to the source, I found a grinning Dee, hand still wrapped around the hilt of the knife currently sticking out of my side. That sort of blow would have killed a normal person from the blood loss and hit to vital arteries. Lucky me, I wasn’t normal. Even luckier I wasn’t normal when, before I had a chance to properly react, another knife sunk into my chest inches above my heart. Keeping perfectly calm, I waved off Dee’s hand and curled both of mine around both weapons, unable to stop the slight smirk from spreading across my face at the quickly paling faces of the twin culprits. Slowly the daggers were wrenched out with a sickening squelch. I even took opportunity to inspect my own blood on the blades. Smirking, I moved one close to my face and licked away some of the crimson, barely containing my laughter as they both went white as a sheet.

“Run,” I said in a completely calmed tone. They both took off like a bullet from a gun. That’s when I started laughing, my own echoing with Boris’s as he watched the twins scamper off.

“Okay, that? That was awesome. They were scared shitless!” he barked out, slapping his hand on the table and clutching his stomach. I looked over at Elliot to find a look of amazement in his now wide violet eyes.

“I have never seen them run away that fast from anything,” he mumbled, a smirk stretching on his own face, “maybe I should find you if they ever decide to ditch their posts again,” he snickered, waving his fork at me.

“Ah, nothin’ like scaring little children who think they can take me on,” I giggled, finally managing to calm my own laughter. Boris’s was still shaking with his own, but he wasn’t nearly as loud.

“I sometimes forgot how creepy you can get…” Alice groaned, glancing briefly at the knives and shuddering. Snickering at her response, I merely tossed the knives behind me, listening to make sure they didn’t hit anyone, and nodded once in satisfaction as the tell tale thump sounded upon their embedding in the ground. Raising the cup back up to my lips, I was just about to take a sip when the sky suddenly faded from the clear midnight hour, to high noon. Well, that almost made me drop my cup. Certainly hadn’t seen the sky ever do _that_ before. My expression was clearly that of “what the actual fuck just happened” when I turned on Alice, raising one arm to gesture up at the sky.

“Right, crap, sorry,” she quickly apologized, grabbing my arm and yanking it down, “forgot to mention time is a bit...funky here...”

“You call that funky?!” I blanched, gesturing again with my free arm, which was then snagged down by Boris.

“Easy where you wave that thing, killer,” he chuckled, keeping my arm restrained.

“Right, this party is over then,” Blood suddenly called as he stood, clapping his hands once for emphasis. I whirled my head around to look at him only to get a direct hit to my eyes from the sun, making me instantly recoil with a sharp hiss. Alice reacted first, dragging back towards her and covering my eyes with her hand.

“Blood, do you think she could stay the day? Sunlight might not burn her anymore but she still hates it,” Alice explained for me, for which I was very thankful. My eyes felt like they were on fire and my fangs felt too heavy. Which only reminded me I had yet to replenish any of the blood I had lost both to Elliot’s gun, and the Tweedle’s.

“I have no qualms over it. I can even prepare a room for you, Miss Alice,” Blood answered calmly, emerald gaze settling on both of us. I didn’t even need to look to know he was doing that; I could practically feel his eyes on me. Groaning, I slapped my hand onto the table, gaining their sole attention.

“That’s all fine and dandy, but my eyes feel like someone doused them with lemon juice, so I’m gonna be blind for a few minutes. Someone is either gonna have to guide me inside or just carry me to wherever until they’re fine,” I explained, resisting every urge to rub my eyes, “who volunteers as tribute?”

“Got ya covered, killer,” Boris piped up. Going blind was always weird for me, despite my already sharpened other senses. I tried my best not to struggle as Alice let me go and the feline picked me up from my chair, holding me close to his chest. I peeked up at him to find his grinning face peering down at me, but his showing eye quickly widened in half fright, and half worry.

“Damn, girl. Might wanna keep those peepers closed for a bit. You are super red,” he hissed softly, shifting me slightly in his grip before starting to move forward. Immediately closing my eyes, I settled my head against his shoulder, listening as the tea party was cleaned up, as Alice and Elliot chatted softly about what was happening, and to Blood leading us in silence. I only knew we were inside when the smell of the air changed from clean and altogether “outside” to mild dust and plaster, cleaned carpeting, and roses. I still didn’t open my eyes yet. But that didn’t keep me from piping up about my...other needs.

“For the love of God, there had better be some people willing to be a donor because I have lost too damn much blood today and I have yet to replace any of it,” I growled. It wasn’t helping I could already hear Boris’s blood running in his veins. I half regretted those words when I heard Blood start chuckling.

“I do recall saying I wouldn't mind that bite earlier,” he cooed, making my face feel hot.

“Whoa whoa, what’s the deal with the suggestive comment? Didn’t think you moved _that_ fast, Hatter,” Boris snickered, jostling me a bit to get my attention. I half dreaded explaining it again, especially given my current predicament.

“A bite from a vampire is supposed to be an exceedingly pleasurable experience,” Blood interrupted for me, though to be frank that was even more embarrassing.

“Seriously?! Does this mean I can volunteer as tribute again?” the feline purred. I could practically see his eyebrows wagging at the idea. Given my current blood needs, I chose to now go along with it 

“I did say I wanted dinner before someone got handsy with me,” I purred back, only to yelp when someone pinched my arm. Probably Alice.

“Ari, control yourself,” she huffed up. Definitely Alice. Grumbling, I shifted closer to Boris in his grip, brows furrowing as he came to a stop, and listening to the door to what I assumed was a guest room click open.

“For real though, I like... _really_ need some blood here. And unless no one wants to die I suggest...three, maybe four people,” I explained, hands grabbing onto Boris’s arms as the world started shifting away from him. I sagged slightly in relief when I felt a mattress appear under me.

“That begs the question on if it matters whether they die,” Blood called, my head tilting in his direction. I was guessing he was still by the doorway. Still, that question made me pause. I hadn’t taken a life while feeding for years, having learned to control that particular part of feeding.

“...Two, but both will wind up dead,” I answered after a long pause, wringing my hands together in my lap. Small hands covered mine; Alice. Biting on my lip my brows furrowed again. I knew how she felt about death after losing her mother and sister, and her all too human nature of not killing things. Someone would have to keep her out of the mansion for a bit while I...ate. I heard Blood make his exit, the click of his shoes sounding softer as he made his way down the hall, only to grow louder as he apparently returned with two more sets of far dainter shoes in tow. I assumed he had brought two of the maid. I knew this place wasn’t normal...but willingly tossing two of your employees to a hungry vampire? That was odd in and of itself. Pushing those thoughts aside, I twisted my hand in Alice’s grip, squeezing once before letting her go.

“Somebody get Alice out of here, and please leave. Blood knows already I prefer to do this sort of thing in private,” I warned. The bed creaked as Boris and Alice stood up to leave, the sound of their footsteps echoing through the room. As soon as the door clicked shut and I couldn’t hear anyone else in the room, I finally opened my eyes to see who was now trapped in here with me. Eyes settling on the two female staff hands and hearing their blood...everything was a bit of a blur after that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look who finally is posting a new chapter! Four should be up soon too!


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